Drama Unfolds: French President Aims to Legally Challenge a Conspiracy Theorist’s Claims.
Welcome back to Barf Bag.
Candace Owens, described by this site as a professional provocateur, was previously employed by the conservative outlet The Daily Wire. Approximately a year and a half ago, they let her go due to her making antisemitic remarks. Owens now operates independently, running a podcast and maintaining a significantly large YouTube channel. It’s here that she has been promoting the baseless assertion that France’s First Lady, Brigitte Macron, is transgender. French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife are now suing Owens for defamation.
A 219-page legal complaint was lodged in Delaware Superior Court on Wednesday, claiming Owens has uploaded several misleading videos to her YouTube channel, which boasts nearly 4.5 million subscribers. Owens has released a series titled “Becoming Brigitte” and is even marketing merchandise that supports this conspiracy theory. The lawsuit claims that Owens “has leveraged this falsehood to boost her independent platform, enhance her public profile, and generate revenue.”
The Macrons’ attorney, Tom Clare, spoke to CNN explaining that the couple has been trying for nearly a year to get Owens to retract her statements. Clare mentioned to Jake Tapper, “She’s ridiculed the Macrons and our attempts to correct the misinformation every time we’ve approached her.” He also noted that pursuing legal action was a “last resort,” saying, “enough was enough, it was time to hold her accountable.”
While the exact sum has not been disclosed, Clare indicated the couple would seek punitive damages, hinting that if Owens persists with these allegations, “the compensation could be considerable.”
The Associated Press highlighted that the Macrons are no strangers to such bizarre allegations:
In their home country, conspiracy theorists have long harassed the presidential couple with claims that Brigitte was originally a man named Jean-Michel Trogneux, who then transitioned. Jean-Michel Trogneux is actually Brigitte’s brother.
In September last year, Brigitte and Jean-Michel Trogneux won a defamation lawsuit against two individuals who were fined and ordered to pay damages by a Paris court for spreading such rumors online. A Paris appeals court reversed this decision earlier this month. The siblings are now appealing to France’s supreme court, as per French news outlets.
Owens has responded to the lawsuit—predictably on YouTube—calling it a clear and desperate attempt at image management, and continuing to misgender the first lady as “a very goofy man.”
Controversies are not new to Owens. YouTube suspended her account in September 2023 for anti-LGBTQ remarks that breached its hate speech policies. A year later, her account was suspended and demonetized again following an interview with Kanye West, where they both alleged that Jewish individuals control the media. This defamation lawsuit, particularly from a global leader, is a first for her.
In 2023, Owens controversially remarked that the U.S. had deteriorated since women gained the right to vote. Shortly thereafter, at Turning Point USA‘s annual Young Women’s Leadership Summit, she stated, “Every societal problem we are currently battling has been initiated by women.”
One could argue that a certain woman is indeed contributing to societal problems!
2028 GOP primary watch:
Josh Hawley is crafting his 2028 image as the Guy Who Feels Your Pain After Supporting Bills That Ruined Your Life
— Paul Waldman (@paulwaldman.bsky.social) 2025-07-23T14:41:24.137Z
NYC mayor Eric Adams watch:
Kudos to whoever chose the soundtrack for Mayor Adams activating the giant router — he’s announcing a plan to offer free WiFi to Section 8 housing in the Bronx. pic.twitter.com/q2gfItJqcc
— Jeff Coltin (@JCColtin) July 23, 2025
Trump-related issues:
- The director of FEMA‘s Urban Search and Rescue division, Ken Pagurek, resigned after alleging that DHS Secretary Kristi Noem delayed authorizing the deployment of FEMA’s search and rescue teams during the Texas floods by 72 hours. [CNN]
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly shared details of a U.S. bombing campaign in Yemen based on classified information marked “SECRET,” according to an inspector general. [Washington Post]
- Texas Governor Greg Abbott seemed hesitant to redraw the state’s congressional maps mid-decade—until President Donald Trump intervened. (Republicans, holding a slim majority in the House, are anticipated to lose control in the 2026 midterms.) [Texas Tribune]
- The Department of Defense has modified restroom signage to “reflect biological sex” and continues to “monitor intimate spaces for compliance,” adhering to Trump’s anti-trans executive orders. These actions are truly disturbing. [404 Media]
- The Trump administration, which claims its mass deportation policy targets serious offenders, allowed a convicted triple murderer back into the U.S. as part of a prisoner swap. [New York Times]
- House Republicans have suggested naming the Kennedy Center‘s opera house after First Lady Melania Trump. [CBS News]
- Trump has threatened to block funding for a new stadium deal for the Washington Commanders unless the NFL team reverts its name to a racial slur for Indigenous people. [Associated Press]
- Senator Angus King (I-Maine) regretted confirming an anti-abortion Trump judicial nominee, Joshua Divine, to a lifetime position in Missouri, blaming misleading advice from Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who had given Divine “a strong reference.” [HuffPost]
Non-Trump related issues:
- Texas Attorney General and Senate hopeful Ken Paxton is under scrutiny for allegedly falsifying mortgage applications by claiming multiple properties as his primary residence to secure lower interest rates. [Associated Press]
- Disgraced former Congressman George Santos began his over seven-year sentence at a federal prison in New Jersey for wire fraud, identity theft, and money laundering. [NBC News]
- Even after a meeting, Speaker of the House Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) has yet to endorse NYC Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. [MSNBC/C-SPAN]
- Former president Joe Biden secured a $10 million deal for his memoir, which still falls short of the advance Bill Clinton received for his 2004 autobiography. [The Hill]
- Continuing a trend of centrists willing to compromise trans rights for political gain, Rahm Emanuel told Megyn Kelly on air that a man cannot become a woman. [The Hill]
- Minnesota state Senator Nicole Mitchell (D) will resign after being convicted of felony burglary for breaking into her stepmother’s home. [NBC News]
That’s all for this edition of Barf Bag—thanks for tuning in!
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